Fairfax County Sheriff's Office Fields All-Female Team for May 5 Honor Guard Competition

Update: May 5, 2012

First place! Again. The Fairfax County Sheriff's Office Honor
Guard took home the top prize for the third consecutive year in the 21st
annual competition sponsored by the Metropolitan Washington Council of
Governments.

May 2, 2012

Stand by. Honor Guard…attention! Port…arms! Forward…march!

So it will begin for the Fairfax County Sheriff's Office Honor Guard as
five team members cross the grounds of the National Law Enforcement
Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 5. The
event is a competition and wreath laying ceremony sponsored by the
Washington Metropolitan Council of Governments during National
Correctional Employees Week.

The Fairfax County Sheriff's Office took first place and the best
dressed award in the same competition, in both 2010 and 2011. How will
the team try to top that for 2012? Women. For the first time in the
Sheriff's Office history, all members of the competing team are female.
In fact, never in the 21-year history of this competition has any agency
fielded an all-female team.

"We did not set out to have a certain number of men or women for
this competition," said Lieutenant William Friedman, commander of the
honor guard. "But when it looked like the team was shaping up to be
mostly female, we decided as a group to go all the way in that
direction."

The honor guard currently has 36 members, eight of whom are female.
Joining the team is voluntary, but the process is very competitive. The
team is known for its strict composure, precise military bearing and
meticulous attention to detail. Members formally train for two hours
every month and drill before every event.

"We’ve had so much fun at practices," said Private First Class
Amy Lewis, a nine-year veteran of the honor guard. "Marching has been
easier, too. Since we’re all the same height, our strides match step for
step. Win or lose, we’ve had a great journey to get to this
competition."

The memorial is located on E Street, between 4th and 5th Streets, NW.
Visitors riding Metro should go to the Judiciary Square Station, F Street
exit; the memorial is directly above.